Sydney and Gage: Family of Four and Maybe More?
by SaltyMama1315
Summary: Everything is going well for the Gages - wonderful marriage, adorable children, loving family. But what could happen when Sydney thinks she wants more?
1. Chapter 1

Things were comfortable for Ranger Francis Gage. He had everything he could've dreamed of: a beautiful wife in the form of Ranger Sydney Cooke, two beautiful children Andrea and Christopher, his sister Julie, brother Julian and wonderful friends he considered family. What else could he possibly want?

He sat at his desk, going over reports from their latest bust. Senior Ranger Cordell Walker was in his office with Ranger James Trivette and Ranger Julian Parker was getting some coffee. As for Ranger Sydney Cooke, she was upstairs visiting with Walker's wife, Alex. Alex was now 8 months pregnant with their second child and Gage began to wonder if Sydney was getting baby fever. She had constantly been around Alex since she announced her pregnancy.

"Thinking about something important?" Julian asked, perching himself on the corner of Gage's desk.

"Syd is up with Alex…again."

"Is that a bad thing?" Julian asked. He hadn't been a ranger long, going on seven months since he had been sworn in. When Julian first came to Dallas, he hadn't expected to join the Rangers, but after assisting the team on a big bust, Walker had asked him to join them.

"No, but I have a feeling that Syd is getting baby fever."

"Would that be a bad thing?"

"I kinda thought we had the perfect family already. I mean, we got Andie and Chris, one of each. Truth be told, I never thought about having kids at all and then I found out about Andie. Then we had Chris. I mean, everything should be perfect right?"

"Hey you're asking a guy who married his high school sweetheart and is recently divorced and fighting for custody."

"Seriously?'

"Yeah, Regina's fighting me. Ever since she told her dad she was going to move out here and he convinced her not to, she wants to keep Bryson in Pawhuska. Her father has never liked me and he really didn't like it when we got married."

"I thought you worked for him in high school."

"I did, I was fine as a ranch hand but as his son-in-law? That's a whole 'nother ball game."

"Sorry man. I know how much you were looking forward to having him here."

"It'll work out; I just need to be able to talk to Regina without her father around."

"Good luck man."

"Thanks brother."

Meanwhile, Sydney was upstairs with Alex. She had to admit, she felt a twinge of jealousy when Alex announced her pregnancy. Sydney never truly realized how much she loved being a mother until she had Chris. It was different with Andie, she hadn't carried her. But being pregnant was one of the happiest times in Sydney's life.

"So you guys didn't find out with this one either?" Sydney asked.

"Nope. Walker and I were in agreement this time. I know he's hoping for a boy but I still want another little girl."

Sydney sighed and it didn't go unnoticed by her friend.

"What's wrong Sydney?" Alex asked.

"Nothing."

"Yeah right, what's up?"

"I guess I was just thinking about Chris."

"Is he okay?"

"Oh yeah, he's fine. I just think back to when he was a baby and how I miss that baby time. Chris is almost 3 and I guess I just miss having a baby around."

"Have you told Gage you want another baby?"

"No, he thinks what we have is perfect now. I know I should be happy with our family, but I can't help it."

"I think you should talk to your husband. Every family is different. After everything that happened with Angela, I was sure I didn't want to go through it again. The traumatic delivery and thinking we were going to lose her, I would never wish that on anyone. But everything turned out fine and now she's almost 4."

"I know."

"Look at Erika and Jimmy. They have Dallas and as far as I know, they haven't talked about having anymore, although I'm sure Erika would love to have a little girl. Everyone is different. Just talk to Gage, I'm sure he'll understand your feelings."

"Maybe. I know he's been spending a lot of time with Julian right now."

"Is everything okay?"

"I guess his ex-wife has decided not to move to Dallas."

"Oh, I'm so sorry to hear that. I know how they were hoping to co-parent their son here."

"Well I hope they'll work it out. Listen, I got to run. I'm due downstairs."

"See you later."

Sydney waved goodbye to her friend and headed down to Headquarters. She found Gage and Julian in what appeared to be a deep conversation.

"What are we talking about so intently?" she asked, walking up.

"Nothing," the guys said together.

"Yeah right."

Walker came out of his office and headed for the rangers. "Looks like we're going after him again."

"Who?" Sydney asked.

"Sonny Tantero."

"Isn't he still in jail?" Gage asked.

"His is but his son Sonny Jr isn't. He's taking over where his dad left off. Rumor has it; he's been dealing meth out of the Dallas Star Bar. Sydney, I want you and your partner to get over there and check it out."

"You got it. Ready to roll partner?" Sydney asked.

"Let's do this. See you later Gage," Julian said as he followed Sydney out the door. Gage sighed and turned to Walker.

"Walker, you got a minute?"

"What's up Gage?"

"I know you said we had to restructure some things, but why couldn't Syd and I stay partners? You said as long as we kept our personal life out of the job, we could."

"I know that but Briscoe wanted it this way. Sydney is your wife and Julian is your brother. By-laws say that you and Julian can't be partners because of your blood relation and Briscoe thinks it just makes sense to pair Julian with Sydney and you with Trivette. This is in no way a punishment; I hope you're not thinking it is."

"It just sucks that I'm not out there, watching her back."

"Julian would never let anything happen to Sydney, you know that."

"I know but I'm used to watching her back. We anticipate each other's moves."

"Julian has taken all this proficiency tests and passed his field tests. He's knowledgeable in hand to hand combat and has a history of dealing with drugs and gangs. There really isn't anything else I can say."

"I know. I just don't like it."

"I know Gage, trust me I know."


	2. Chapter 2

Sydney and Julian sat in the car outside the Dallas Star Bar. Julian was all set to charge in and demand answers but Sydney convinced him to wait. She wanted to observe first, see if they could spot any of the old players still in the game.

"So what were you and Gage really talking about?" Sydney asked.

"I think you should talk to him about that."

"Come on Julian, you don't have to keep Gage's secrets. I know something is bothering him."

Julian thought for a minute. He knew he should keep his brother's secret but would it really hurt to share Gage's concerns with Gage's wife?

"He thinks you've been spending too much time with Alex."

"Really? That's never bothered him before? Alex and I have been friends ever since Gage and I came here."

"I guess it's just been recently."

Sydney thought for a second. Why would Gage be upset that she was spending time with Alex recently? True she had been spending more time with Alex since she was pregnant but could that be what was troubling Gage?

"Well, I guess I have been lately."

"Yeah, ever since Alex announced she was pregnant."

"Gage was talking about Alex being pregnant?"

"He seems to think you're catching baby fever."

"Oh."

"Yeah."

"That's not a bad thing though. Babies are so special."

"Yeah but he thinks you guys have the perfect family already."

"Oh," Sydney said again.

"I know it's none of my business, but do you want another baby?"

"I'm not going lie, Julian, I loved being pregnant. I could do without all the excitement that happened when Chris was born but…"

"What happened when he was born? Everyone keeps saying a lot happened that day but nobody ever told me what."

"Did Gage ever tell you about Andie's mother?"

"Not much."

"Well she's in jail."

"Wow, what for?"

"She assaulted me, assaulted Gage, tried to kill me and nearly raped him."

"Are you shitting me?"

"Nope. After we got her sent to jail and I adopted Andie, we thought everything was fine. But Hilary was working on a plan. She had her half-sister helping her out. Gage ended up in jail on murder charges, and I thought we were going to lose him. But a neighbor helped corroborate his alibi and we got him out. Then her sister kidnapped us and held us hostage at a farm with the intent on killing us both and taking our baby. Walker helped get us out but I went into labor. Gage had to deliver the baby since Walker's arm was broken."

"Gage delivered Chris?"

"We had no choice. Chris wasn't waiting any longer and Gage was the only one around who could do it. Walker walked him through it."

"Well, at least I can understand why he would be a little hesitant about having another baby. That would be enough to traumatize anyone."

"But this time would be different, I could deliver in a hospital and a doctor would be the one to deliver the baby."

"But I'm sure it still bothers him a bit."

"You're probably right."

"So what's the deal with this Tantero guy anyway?" Julian asked, trying to steer to a new subject.

"His father was a huge player back in the day. DPD had put an undercover cop in his organization but Sonny found out. He had one of his boys kill the cop and they tried to bury him in cement. But Sonny went to jail, all thanks to one brave little girl."

"What did she do?"

"She saw the murder and testified. Gage and I had to protect her family while her father was competing in the Elvis contest. You should've seen Gage dressed up as Elvis, it was so funny."

"Can't believe one little girl took down a major drug lord."

"A deaf little girl at that."

"She was deaf?"

"Yeah, that was our first experience with a deaf person."

"What was the second?"

"When Gage lost his hearing. A dangerous explosion had ruptured his ear drums and he went deaf. We didn't know if he'd ever get his hearing back and he ended up at the Dallas School for the Deaf. I went with him, to learn what he learned."

"Why?"

"He was my partner; I needed to communicate with him. But it was more than that. I loved him; I just didn't know how to tell him."

"I can understand that. Way back when, if something had happened to Regina, I would've done whatever I could to communicate with her. I just wish we could communicate now."

"Gage said she's trying to keep your son in Oklahoma."

"Yeah, it's just so hard being away from him. I love my son more than anything."

"Hey, heads up," Sydney said, pointing. Sonny Tantero Jr. had just walked out of the Dallas Star Bar with his goons. Now it was time to ask questions.

"Let's do this," Sydney said as they got out of the car. They walked up to the bar.

"Sonny Tantero Jr?" Julian asked.

"Who wants to know?" he asked.

"Texas Rangers," Sydney said, flashing her badge. Sonny took off on a run while his 2 goons charged Julian. He delivered a few swift blows while Sydney took off after Tantero.

He turned and saw Sydney coming after him. Thinking a woman couldn't stop him, he turned and smiled.

"What are you gonna do about it baby?" he taunted.

"Wrong choice of words," Sydney said as she did a roundhouse kick to his stomach. Tantero doubled over and looked up just in time to catch Sydney's boot with his cheek. He blocked her next kick, delivering a blow of his own to her stomach. It stunned her for a minute before jumping up and wrapping her ankles around his neck. She flipped him to the ground, using the same move she had used on Gage before they went undercover in that murder case involving the professional wrestler.

"I think next time you'll address me as Ranger Cooke," Sydney said as she slapped the cuffs on him.

"You got nothing on me, bitch."

"Might not but right now we have assault on a peace officer."

"You tackled me."

"You ran. All we wanted was to ask you some questions."

"You okay here?" Julian asked as he came up to Sydney.

"Yeah, we're fine," Sydney said as she handed Tantero off to the DPD officers that had arrived. "Let's go check out the bar."

Together they walked back to the bar and inside, they found a private back room filled with meth, money and enough records to put Tantero away with his dad for a good long while.

Julian couldn't help but be amazed at Sydney's strength and power. Tantero was easily twice her size and she took him down like nothing. Now he was beginning to see what his brother liked about Sydney.


	3. Chapter 3

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: IT GETS A LITTLE NSFW IN THIS CHAPTER. IF YOU HAVE SOMETHING YOU WOULD LIKE TO SEE, SHOOT ME A MESSAGE OR LEAVE A COMMENT. ENJOY!**

That night, after dinner, Gage was giving Chris his bath and Sydney was helping Andie with her spelling. Walker had let them go home early since Sydney and Julian were able to bring in Tantero so easily.

When Gage was done with Chris, he got him into bed and Sydney came in to read his bedtime stories. They always traded off when it came to putting Chris to bed but Andie always preferred Gage to read to her. That usually gave Sydney time to clean the kitchen the way she liked, but tonight she had something else in mind.

Gage had closed Andie's door, leaving her sound asleep and snuggling with her teddy bear. He checked on Chris, smiling to himself as the 2 year old slept. Then Gage continued down the hall towards the room he shared with his wife.

He opened the door and stood, shocked. The room was filled with candles, flickering gently against the paint. The room smelled of vanilla and Gage noticed a note sitting on the bedside table. His wife was nowhere to be found.

Gage picked up the note. He opened it to read "PREPARE FOR THE NIGHT OF YOUR LIFE". He smiled to himself, thinking he knew how this was going to end. He looked at the bed and saw another note. He picked it up. This one said "LIE DOWN, CLOSE YOUR EYES AND RAISE YOUR HANDS". This was new. Sydney was never like this before. But he did as the note said and laid down on the bed. Closing his eyes, he raised him arms up above his head.

Sydney entered the room, checking that Gage's eyes were closed. She wanted tonight to be special for them. The last time either of them had planned a romantic evening was when Gage got out of jail. Sydney took another deep breath as she ran her hands down the sides of her lingerie.

Sydney walked over to the bed and took her handcuffs out of the table drawer.

"Syd?"

"Shhh."

She gently clasped one around Gage's wrist. He was about to open his eyes when Sydney stopped him.

"Keep them closed."

"What's going on?"

"Just a surprise."

Sydney clasped the other cuff on his wrist and pulled out one of Gage's ties. She tied it around his head, over his eyes.

"Sydney, what's going on?"

"Gage, I just want to try something new tonight. Can't you just indulge me?"

He was about to speak when Sydney kissed him. She drew his bottom lip between her teeth and when he gasped in delight, slid her tongue out to stroke his. He wanted to take her greedily into his arms but his restraints were preventing that.

"Syd, can't you take these things off?" Gage asked his lips still against hers.

"Gage tonight is all about what I can do for you. I want you to thoroughly enjoy yourself."

"I am, but I'd love to hold you."

"Soon enough. First I need to take care of you."

Sydney opened the buttons on Gage's shirt, revealing his tanned and toned stomach. She traced her fingers down the scars left from the bear at Lake Ebby before reaching over and grabbing a bottle from the drawer. She squirted some of the liquid on Gage's chest. It was tingling minty massage oil and as she rubbed it into his skin, she began to kiss his neck. She stopped and gave a little nibble on his skin before continuing down his chest.

She got to his waist and popped open his belt. She unsnapped his jeans before sliding down the zipper.

"Syd?"

"Just relax. This is all for you."

"I'm at your mercy Syd."

"I like to hear that."

She pulled his jeans down and off of him. She began to rub the oil on his legs, slowly working her way back up his body. She tugged at the cotton boxers still covering him, sliding them down his legs.

"God, this feels so good," Gage crooned as he completely melted under her touch. Sydney smiled to herself as she straddled his legs and began to rub her hands up and down the length of his member.

"Does it feel good Gage?"

"So good, baby," he uttered. He gasped when he felt her mouth on him. "Oh God, Syd, you have no idea what you do to me."

Smiling inside, Sydney kept a steady pace at what she was doing. She wanted Gage to be completely relaxed. She had to admit to herself that she had ulterior motives. She was planning on having a heavy discussion with her husband but he always seemed to be more open after certain…activities.

Just when she thought he couldn't handle anymore, Sydney slid up his body. She kissed him again before easing herself onto him.

"God Syd."

"Feels so good Gage."

"You have no idea."

"Oh I think I do."

The slow and steady rhythm became fast and frenzied. Gage's hips matched hers thrust for thrust and his groans matched her moans. She kissed him again, swallowing his moans as he came inside of her. Sydney arched her back, feeling herself tighten and loosen around him as she was spent.

"That was amazing," Gage said, his breath ragged.

"Tell me about it."

"This was certainly different but do you mind if we get these off?" Gage asked, lifting his arms to jiggle the cuffs. Sydney reached over and grabbed the keys. She released him from his restraints and he took off the blindfold.

"What brought this on?"

"Well, I wanted to talk to you."

"About what?"

"Our life, our family."

"What about our family?" Gage asked, taking her in his arms. He stroked back her hair and kissed her forehead.

"You know how much I love our family. Our kids mean everything to me. It's hard to believe that Chris is going to be 3 so soon and Andie is 6. But don't you ever feel like something is missing?"

"No, I think what we have now is perfect. We got both a boy and a girl. What more could we want?"

"Another baby?"

"You want another baby?" Gage asked, knowing the answer.

"Well, kind of. I mean, I loved being pregnant."

"You complained the entire time about being on desk duty."

"I might've hated being trapped behind a desk, but I loved being pregnant. To feel Chris moving around inside of me, kicking and turning. It's different with Andie, I didn't carry her. But yeah, I miss that feeling. I would like to feel it again."

"Syd, I don't know."

"I'm not saying we need to decide right now, but I want to know the matter is up for discussion. I want us to be on board and I want the kids to be on board. It's not like we don't have the room, we could turn the guest room into the nursery and we've worked it out before that one of us is always home at night with them. We could do it again."

"If we had another kid, I think our only option would be getting a nanny or babysitter or something. We really can't afford either of us to cut back on hours at work."

"Well, maybe my parents could come for a little bit. You know they love seeing the kids and my mom couldn't get enough of Chris as a baby."

"You mom and dad living with us? Do you really think that's a good idea?"

"I don't know Gage; I'm just trying to think out loud. I just don't want this to be the end of the discussion."

"I'm not saying the discussion is over but could we at least table it for tonight? After all that _exercise_ all I want is either a nap or a sandwich."

"Always thinking of food, huh Gage?" Sydney asked as she laughed. She got up out of bed, slipped on her robe and out the door. Gage pulled the blankets up to his waist, thinking to himself how fun it was to have a baby in the house. He missed the baby stage with Andie and with Chris, he couldn't get enough. Maybe Sydney was onto something about this baby thing.

By the time Sydney came back in with his sandwich, Gage was asleep. Sydney smiled as she took the chicken salad sandwich back down to the kitchen. She made sure the door was locked before heading back to the warm bed and waiting arms of her husband.


	4. Chapter 4

**ANOTHER NSFW CHAPTER BUT I THINK ITS A GOOD THING...AT LEAST FOR OUR RANGERS! STAY TUNED FOR SOME DRAMA COMING UP AND MAYBE SOME GOOD NEWS!**

A few days after their romantic evening, Sydney and Gage were dropping the kids off with Erika. The governor had approached Walker and wanted his team to take on a huge undercover operation. Erika was taking Chris and Andie, plus checking in on Angela and Alex. Luckily, Gordon was able to come into town for a few days to help. This was going to be a big assignment – the governor had been in touch with the local military base that was going to be transporting a top secret substance and wanted the extra protection.

After saying goodbye to their children, Gage and Sydney headed home. They took their time, each one thinking of the conversation they had only nights ago. Not much had been spoken of that conversation and that made Sydney nervous. She wanted so badly for them to come to a conclusion but she didn't know how to bring it up again. Gage, on the other hand, had spent days thinking about how Sydney looked that night, vulnerable and innocent as she tried to convince him to expand their family.

Suddenly, Gage pulled the car over and began down a long dirt road.

"Where are we going, Gage?" Sydney asked.

"Indulge me."

"We really need to get home and pack our stuff. Who knows how long we're going to be gone?"

"We will, but I want to take a little detour."

He pulled up near the lake and parked the car. Sydney unfastened her seat belt and Gage did the same. She turned to face her husband, opened her mouth to say something but got cut off. Gage had kissed his wife with all the passion he could summon. He was hoping this would be his way to tell his wife he agreed with her.

Sydney's fingers got lost in his hair. She could feel his hands as the roamed over her back, successfully unsnapping her bra with one hand and with the kind of skill a teenage boy would marvel at.

Without words, they both climbed into the back seat of the car. A tangle of limbs and hands, Gage took possession of her mouth again. He had her pressed against the seat, his hand roaming up under her shirt. She frantically undid the buttons and pulled the loose bra from her arms. Gage feasted on her chest, nipping and biting all the while his stubble electrified her skin. Sydney had never been so aroused and she had never seen this side of her husband before. They normally had a very active sex life, but this was new. Maybe she wasn't the only one interested in spicing up their love life.

Sydney moved to straddle him, her knees digging into the seat cushions. Gage held her face as he kissed her, hearing her moan into the kiss. His hands fell to her jeans, fighting with the button to get them open.

"Gage, I've never seen you like this," Sydney breathed into his ear.

"Just my way of keeping you on your toes," Gage said as he smiled. "You look so hot today, you know that?"

Sydney giggled as she reached between them to feel Gage's arousal through the tight fabric of his jeans. He groaned at the contact and tugged at Sydney's panties. In the tight space, she managed to slide them down her legs and she pushed enough of the cotton covering her husband so he could slip inside her.

Sydney couldn't help it; she sighed at the contact. She started rocking slowly against him, relishing in the feelings he was creating in her. She had to admit; she loved when Gage got impatient and needed to have her right then and there. There was a side to himself that he reserved just for his wife and this was one of those times.

"How bad do you want me, Syd? You gonna show me?"

"Every day of my life," she moaned, moving faster.

Together they met thrust for thrust and the windows began to steam up. Gage was glad that nobody ever really came to this spot; this would be a compromising position to explain if someone else had shown up.

Sydney could feel her orgasm as it built up inside her. It ached, like a coil waiting to be sprung. She could feel herself tighten around her husband and together they exploded into a sticky, sweaty mess in the backseat.

Only after a minute could Sydney look into her husband's eyes.

"This was quite unexpected."

"It was fun though," he said, that boyish smile shining at her.

"Yeah it was. What brought this on?"

"I've thought about what you said."

"When? I've said a lot of things, Gage."

"The other night, after our _exercise_ , when you talked about wanting another baby."

"Does this mean you are in agreement with me? You want another baby too?"

"It wouldn't be horrible. I kinda do miss Chris at that age. I know it might take some figuring out to do but if it's what you want, then let's make it happen."

"Oh Gage!" Sydney couldn't help contain her excitement as she launched herself at her husband. She had longed to hear these words from him and now he was making all her dreams come true, yet again. Would there ever be an end to the kind and gentle soul that was Francis Gage? Sydney hoped she would never have to find out.


	5. Chapter 5

The next morning, Gage and Sydney arrived at Headquarters. Julian was already there, getting coffee when they walked in.

"Morning Julian," Gage called out.

"Morning guys, want some coffee?" Julian asked.

"Sure. Where are Walker and Trivette?" Sydney asked.

"Big meeting upstairs with Briscoe about the undercover assignment."

"I wish I knew what we were supposed to be transporting," Sydney said.

"Probably classified information. You'd have to have some sort of special clearance to know," Gage said, swallowing a mouthful of coffee.

"You a former grunt?" Julian asked his brother.

"For a couple years anyways. I went there after the police academy but before I started working in Port Arthur."

"Just another thing you guys have in common," Sydney said, noting another similarity between her husband and brother-in-law.

"Hey I was only in a couple years and made it to Private First Class before I got discharged. I knew I wanted to be a cop more than I wanted an Army career," Gage said.

"How far did you make it Julian?" Sydney asked.

"I was a Sergeant Major, could've made it to Commander Sergeant Major but I wanted out. I just had to go back to Pawhuska and see if Regina was still there or if she had moved on. If I had known then what I know now, maybe I would've stayed in the Army," Julian said, looking defeated.

"Hey if you had stayed in the Army, you wouldn't have your son. You wouldn't have found me and Jules, you wouldn't have a family here and friends and a super cool job as a Texas Ranger," Gage said, slinging an arm around his brother's shoulders.

"I know. I guess I'm just pissed that Regina is letting her father dictate her life again. The whole time we were married, she always had to have her father involved in our lives. He had an opinion on everything; from where we lived to how we educated Brysen. He even had an opinion when we decided to get divorced."

"Sounds like her father couldn't cut the strings," Sydney said.

"Yeah, no kidding. He was hell to work for too but as a boss, I respected his opinion more. But as my father-in-law? I wish I had never met the man."

Walker and Trivette came in followed by a well-dressed man in an Army uniform. Both Gage and Julian stood up straight and brought their hands to their heads to salute him.

"At ease, gentlemen," the man said.

Both men stood, arms folded behind their backs.

"Boy, I wish they would always act like that when we come in a room," Trivette joked.

"Gage, Julian, you can sit down. Everyone I'd like to introduce you to Command Sergeant Major Arnold. Command Sergeant, this is my team."

"Are you joking Ranger Walker? When Commander Briscoe said you had a team, I expected more than this."

"I can assure you sir; we are more than equipped to handle this assignment."

"But there are only 5 of you."

"Sir, please let me introduce my team. This is Senior Ranger James Trivette. He is fluent in computer science and criminal forensics. He has training in the martial arts and has an impressive arrest record."

"Pleasure to meet you sir," Trivette said, shaking Arnold's hand.

Walker continued. "This is Junior Ranger Francis Gage. He has an extensive history in the martial arts, exceeds well in hand to hand combat and has previous Army experience."

"Really? What was your rank?" Arnold asked.

"Private First Class, sir."

"How long did you serve?"

"Three years sir, before I was honorably discharged sir."

"That explains the salute. At ease."

"This is Junior Ranger Sydney Cooke. She is fluent in criminal forensics, excels in the martial arts, especially hand to hand combat. She is also bilingual and can speak fluent Spanish."

"Pleased to meet you, sir," Sydney said, extending her hand.

"Nice to meet you as well. You have a history in the martial arts?"

"Yes sir."

"There aren't too many men who are willing to get in the ring with her," Trivette said.

"How many are there?"

"Three. Walker, Gage and Julian."

"Commendable."

"Lastly is Junior Ranger Julian Parker. He has a history in the Army, spent several years as a member of the Oklahoma State Troopers and their drug retrieval unit and excels in hand to hand combat."

"What was your rank," Arnold asked Julian.

"Sergeant Major sir. I spent 8 years enlisted sir before being honorably discharged sir."

"Commendable. Were you offered promotion before discharge?"

"Sir, yes sir."

"Why didn't you accept?"

"Sir, in all honesty, sir I had a more personal mission of my own."

"I see, might I inquire as to what?"

"I wanted to return home to see if my girl was still waiting for me. I was also searching for my brother and sister."

"Did you find them?"

"Sir yes sir."

"Family is always important. Did your girl wait for you?"

"Sir yes sir."

"Marriage is a special bond, don't you agree?"

"Sir yes sir."

Arnold turned to Walker. "Ranger Walker, your team is acceptable. We can begin the debriefing."

Everyone sat down as Arnold began to explain the assignment.

"You have been asked to help transport a substance to the military base in Waco. The substance is of utmost importance to the United States military and it is of strict urgency that it gets to its destination."

"What type of substance?" Sydney asked.

"I'm afraid that's classified information Ranger Cooke. Only those with security clearance KFD 235 can be privy to that information."

"Sir?" Julian asked.

"Yes Ranger Parker?"

Julian fished out his wallet and withdrew a card. "I have security clearance KFD 235 and as having such clearance, I can authorize the team be given that information."

"Under normal circumstances, you could. However, in order to grant that clearance to the team needs to come from special dispensation from the President of the United States. Since you have the clearance, we can release the information to you, but you must remember that it has to stay classified. This way," Arnold said, leading to Walker's office. Julian followed.

Once the door was shut behind them, Arnold turned to Julian.

"The substance you will help transport is called OP 961."

"What is OP 961?"

"OP 961 is a clear, flavorless and scentless substance that can be ingested. When ingested, it allows someone to persuade the subject to act or say certain things. OP 961 was created in a top secret lab in an undisclosed location and its purposes are for mind control which can be very helpful to our military forces."

"If it got into the wrong hands, we could have a huge chemical warfare on our hands," Julian said.

"That is correct Ranger Parker. Now you understand why it is of utmost urgency to get the substance to the military base."

"Of course sir."

"I know it seems unfair to keep the information from the rest of your team, but it is very important to keep all information as classified as possible. If one of my men or your team were captured by the enemy, they could be tortured into releasing information."

"But even if they are caught, the enemy could still torture them even if they say they have no information."

"That is a chance my men are willing to take. Can you say the same for your team?"

"My team is prepared for any challenge that gets thrown at them. We're Texas Rangers and we can handle anything."

"Glad to hear it. Let's rejoin the team."

Arnold and Julian went back out to the team.

"You'll want to arrive at the base no later than 1600 hours. We ship out tomorrow morning at 0600 hours. Once you arrive on base, you will report directly to me. Only those with the correct clearance know your true identities. You will receive new documentation upon arrival."

"We'll be there sir," Walker said.

"One more thing. Ranger Parker, by order of the United States military, I am hereby reinstating your Sergeant Major status. You currently have the correct clearance needed for the information."

"Thank you sir."

"Now in the event that I'm unavailable, you will report to Ranger Parker or to my Sergeant Major Tyler. You will meet her this evening. I will see you all then."

"Until then, Command Sergeant Major Arnold," Walker said as he led Arnold out. They had less than 3 hours before they had to report at the base. Time to get cracking.

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE: I TRIED TO MAKE IT AS ACCURATE AS POSSIBLE, BUT I MIGHT HAVE GOTTEN SOME OF THE NAMES OF RANK WRONG. PLEASE DON'T JUDGE ME ON THAT, LOL. MORE JUICINESS TO COME BUT NOW WE KNOW WHAT THE "SECRET MISSION" IS ALL ABOUT. A MIND CONTROL SUBSTANCE? HOW COULD THIS GO WRONG FOR OUR RANGERS?**


	6. Chapter 6

Promptly at 4 pm, the team arrived on base. Command Sergeant Major Arnold had sent uniforms over to Headquarters for them. Walker led the way as they went to the Command Sergeant's office. Walker knocked on the door.

"Come in."

Walker opened the door and sitting at the desk inside the room was a pretty brunette dressed in army fatigues.

"Can I help you?" she asked.

"We're looking for Command Sergeant Major Arnold."

"Are you the rangers?" she asked. Everyone just kind of looked at each other. She smiled. "Command Sergeant Major Arnold told me you were coming. I'm Sergeant Major Tyler but you can call me Dana."

"I'm Ranger Walker," Walker said, extending his hand.

"I'm well aware of your reputation Ranger Walker."

"Thank you. This is the rest of my team: Ranger Gage, Ranger Cooke, Ranger Parker and Ranger Trivette."

"Ranger Trivette, I used to watch you every weekend," Dana said, blushing slightly.

"Excuse me?" Trivette asked.

"You used to play football right? You were always one of my favorite players."

"Thank you," Trivette said, now it was his turn to blush. Dana smiled and turned to Julian.

"You're Ranger Parker?"

"Yes ma'am."

"Dana please. Command Sergeant Major Arnold told me about you. You've recently been reinstated to Sergeant Major status."

"Yes ma'am, I mean Dana."

"So we just have a few things we'll need to go over tonight but the rest of you are free to head over to the barracks and get settled in. Command Sergeant Major Arnold has arranged for you all to be in one barrack. The rest of the troop has been told you are Special Ops soldiers brought in to help with the transportation."

"Thank you Dana," Walker said as Dana pointed out where the barrack was.

"I'll be there in a few," Julian said. The rest of the group waved goodbye and headed out. Julian turned back to Dana.

"You look so familiar to me. Have we met before?" he asked.

"I think we were grunts together. Your name sounded familiar as it passed onto my desk. It's nice to have you here. We need all the help we can get with this one."

"Arnold said the substance was crucial to our military."

"It is. When it was created, it was thoroughly tested on a controlled group to maintain the results. They were monitored very closely and we still monitor them daily now."

"Have there been any adverse side effects?" Julian asked.

"No, thankfully. The subjects were administered the substance every day for 1 week. Following the administration, each subject were given a different set of instructions and it only took 2 days for the subjects to respond to their instructions."

"How long ago was the substance administered?"

"About 6 months ago. Like I said, we still continued to monitor them every day and so far none of them have had any adverse effects. If we wanted to keep them under our instructions, we would continue to administer the substance every couple of days but it seems to wear off after a week or so."

"Sounds complicated."

"Not at all. If we were to administer the substance to our enemies, we could use it to have them end the war on their side. It will truly be a benefit to our military."

"Sounds like you think highly of OP 961."

"I do, I believe everyone should have a fighting chance to survive the wars."

"I wish more soldiers thought the way you did," Julian said with a smile.

"Hey you're talking a simple farm girl here. I didn't grow up in no big city like Dallas," Dana said.

"Neither did I."

"Oh, I thought Command Sergeant Major Arnold said you were from Dallas?"

"I am now and I was born in Dallas, but I was adopted by a couple from Oklahoma. I spent my life growing up in Pawhuska."

"No way, I grew up in Tulsa."

"Just another thing we have in common," Julian said, his blue eyes twinkling. Dana blushed, her eyes not quite meeting Julian's.

"You might want to go join your friends. Chow is on in the main hall and then it's clean up and lights out by 2000 hours."

"I guess I'll see you tomorrow then."

"That you will," Dana finished with that shy smile again. Julian just grinned and waved as he headed out the door.

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After dinner in the mess hall, the ranger team helped clean up before retiring to their barrack. Trivette called Erika, just to check in. Gordon had arrived earlier that day and was now up to the Walker ranch with Alex and Angela.

Erika was telling Jimmy all about how Dallas, Chris and Andie had played hard outside before dinner before he passed the phone over to Gage and Sydney to talk to the kids. Julian took a moment and stepped outside.

Once outside, he dialed a number he knew by heart.

"Hello?"

"Hey buddy."

"Dad!"

"Yeah, it's me. How are you doing?"

"Okay. I miss you Dad."

"I miss you too Bryson."

"When can I come see you Dad?"

"I don't know buddy. Listen, is your mom there?"

"Yeah, she just got back from Grandpa's."

"Great."

"I'll get her for you. I love you Dad."

"I love you too Bryson."

There was a pause and then Regina came on the line.

"Julian?"

"Hey Gina."

"Is something wrong?"

"No, I was just calling…"

"What, to rile Bryson up about seeing you? He's going to be all over me all night now so thanks a lot for that."

"Listen, Gina, if you had just agreed to move to Dallas, we wouldn't be having this problem. But that's not why I called."

"Then why did you?"

"I'm UC."

"I thought you were done with that now that you joined the rangers?"

"It was a special request from the governor, we couldn't turn it down. The whole team is here; Walker, Trivette, Sydney and Gage."

"So why are you calling? You've been UC before and never called to tell me."

"This particular assignment is with the army."

"Julian, you discharged from the army and now you're telling me you're back in?"

"Just for this assignment. I wanted to call to remind you that if anything happens to me, you need to get the box. You remember where it is?"

"Yeah, Oklahoma State Bank, Box 143. You used to tell me that every time you went UC."

"Well nothing has changed just because we're divorced. If something happens to me, get the box for Bryson."

"I will. Julian, have you called your mama and daddy?"

"They're next on my list."

"Don't do anything stupid, ya hear me? I don't need no army commander or ranger commander knocking on my door. I could move on but Bryson couldn't. Don't do that to him."

"I wouldn't do anything to him on purpose, Gina. You seem to think I'm some type of bad guy because I wanted to do this line of work. Bryson is proud of me, why can't you be?"

"Because I know better. Daddy was right; you should've gone into ranching instead of law enforcement."

"You dad doesn't know who I am; he knows who I was as a stupid kid in high school. He didn't like me when we were dating and he definitely didn't like me when we got married. I'm sure he's happier than hell that we got divorced."

"Leave my daddy outta this."

"Then you leave him out of it. Look, Gina, I don't want to fight."

"I don't either, Julian."

"Tell Bryson I'll come get him next weekend and he can stay with me."

"I think he'd like that."

"Bye Gina."

"Bye Julian."

Julian hung up the phone and dialed his parents' house. His mother answered the phone.

"Hello?"

"Ma?"

"Julian, is everything alright? Is it Bryson or Regina?"

"Everything is fine, Ma. I was just calling to tell you and Pop that I'm going UC."

"And? I know there's something you're not telling me."

"It's an assignment with the army."

"Please be careful Julian."

"I will Ma, don't you worry."

"Nina, who is that on the phone calling so late?" Julian could hear his father's voice.

"It's Julian," Nina said, handing the phone to her husband Alan.

"Hey there son."

"Hey Pop."

"Everything alright?"

"I was calling to tell you and Ma that I'm going UC on an assignment with the army."

"Be careful Julian."

"I always am Pop."

"I mean it this time. You have too much to live for for you to be young and stupid again."

"Pop, everything is going to be fine. Its' not going to be like last time, I promise you."

"I hope not. We love you son."

"I love you guys too. Bye Pop."

"Bye son."

Julian hung up the phone and sighed. This was not what he wanted to do tonight but he had to tell everyone what he was doing. It was the only way to prevent it from happening again.


	7. Chapter 7

That night, Julian couldn't sleep. He tossed and turned in bed, careful not to wake the others. He kept having the nightmares again. Finally, he got up and went outside. Sitting down on the stairs leading up to the barrack, he tried to catch his breath.

He heard the door open behind him and felt someone sit down next to him.

"Can't sleep?"

"Why are you up Sydney?"

"Who could sleep between Gage's snores and you doing the tango in your bed? Although Jimmy is making that weird gasping sound and I'm surprised it hasn't woken up Walker yet."

"Sorry about waking you up."

"I have 2 kids; the slightest noise wakes me up now."

"You should go back to sleep. The horn will be blowing around 0500 hours so we can prepare to ship out."

"Something is bothering you, Julian."

"Nothing for you to be concerned about."

"Hey I'm your sister-in-law. If you can't tell me, who can you tell?"

Julian thought for a minute. It would be nice to share this with someone, someone who wasn't immediately involved like last time.

"Everyone is worried about me."

"Worried about what?"

"That this assignment is going to be like last time."

"What happened last time?" Sydney asked, stifling back a yawn.

Julian sighed. "When I was a kid, I was young and dumb."

"Who wasn't?"

"Yeah, but I took it to extremes. Like I told Gage, I found out when I was real young that I was adopted. Growing up, I did a lot of stupid shit. I hung out with a group of thugs when I was 14. When I was 15, I stole a tractor from Gina's dad and took her for a ride in the hayfield. He should've fired me, but Gina persuaded him not too. After that, I took my job more seriously but I never stopped living on the edge. Most nights, I was out with Gina, getting into whatever trouble we could find. Just before I turned 16, we made love for the first time. It was the end of summer and not romantic at all. At least, I didn't think so."

"What happened?"

"It was the end of summer; the whole town of Pawhuska was having a big bash in town. I got drunk with some of my buddies and took Gina to the lake, nobody else was there. I started kissing her and it didn't stop. Before we knew it, we were both ripping our clothes off and made love right there on the shoreline underneath the fireworks."

"Sounds romantic to me."

"Maybe to a girl it does, but I just wanted to get it over with. All my buddies were ragging on me for not nailing Gina yet. But I should've been smarter."

"She got pregnant, didn't she?"

"Yeah. We didn't tell anybody and she got an abortion. It wasn't what I wanted to do, knowing how easily it would've been for Colleen to do that when she got pregnant with me, but Gina was dead set on it. She said if her father had found out, I would've been out of a job and he would've killed me."

"Sounds like Gage. He's always saying he'll kill whatever boy knocks up Andie."

"I hope it doesn't happen until she's old enough to understand. But it really messed me up inside. I spent 2 years trying to work through it on my own and nothing worked. Finally I turned 18 and joined the army."

"Did it get better?"

"Not really. Part of me wanted to join the army cause my dad was in the army when I was a kid. The other part of me knew I would be on crazy missions and they could be dangerous. Gina had always promised to wait for me; she actually tried to talk me out of it."

"She didn't want to lose you."

"I know, but at that point in my life, I couldn't stand to be around her."

"Because she terminated her pregnancy?"

"Yeah. I was angry, angry and depressed and the army gave me a gun."

"That can be a dangerous combination."

"I'm sure it can. I took every mission that came my way. After that last one, though, I was done. I had 8 years to work through my anger and depression and I knew it was time to go home and face my life."

"What happened on your last mission?" Sydney asked, fully awake.

"Everyone said I was dumb for taking it. It was a suicide mission and all my brothers in my unit knew I was taking a chance on not coming home. By the time I came to my senses, it was too late to back out. I was chosen for that mission because I excelled at marksmanship. I was one of the best snipers they had."

"Obviously you came back home."

"Yeah, but I had to make 2 very upsetting phone calls; 1 to Gina and 1 to my parents. When I called them tonight, they both reminded me of that last call I made and it just kinda hit me hard. I want to come home from this one."

"You will. Julian, it's not just you out there this time. Gage, Jimmy, Walker and I are all here too. You're our family and we're not going to let you go through this alone. I know it doesn't compare, but when I joined the rangers, my parents were crazy nervous that something was going to happen to me. Even now, as long as I've been with the rangers, my mom still worries. But they both know that my team has my back and nothing will stop me from coming home."

"I hope so Sydney."

"This is what we do; we watch out for each other. This won't be like last time, I can promise you that."

"Let's get back to bed and see if we can salvage a little more sleep before we have to be up."

Together Julian and Sydney went back inside the barrack. Sydney crawled back into bed beside Gage and wrapped her arms around him. He snuggled into her and continued snoring. Julian slid back into his bed and was finally able to drift off to sleep. Sydney was right, his team had his back and he would come home from this one. As long as the team was together, nothing could go wrong, right?


	8. Chapter 8

The next morning, the team was awoken by a startling sound outside. They left the barrack, with Walker leading the way and their weapons hidden beneath their uniforms. Walker headed straight for Command Sergeant Major Arnold.

"Is there a problem, Commander?"

"We've just received word that the base in Waco has found a mole. We cannot take the substance to the base."

"The morning it's going to get transferred, you find a mole? Sounds too convenient to me," Gage said.

"I agree. Something doesn't feel right," Julian said.

"What is your next move Commander?" Jimmy asked.

"We have no choice but to choose another base. However the only other base that could accommodate us would be the base in San Antonio."

"So instead of an hour away, you want to go 5 hours away?" Julian asked.

"We don't have any other choice. This comes be order of the President of the United States."

"Commander, I'm telling you this screams a setup. Being on the road for 5 hours with this substance makes it much more vulnerable than it does an hour away. I urge you to reconsider," Julian said, standing his ground.

"Come with me, Ranger Parker," Arnold said as he led Julian away. They went into Arnold's office and Arnold turned to Julian.

"I don't have a choice here Ranger Parker and neither do you. The President has ordered us to go to the base in San Antonio."

"I'm telling you, Commander, the convoy is going to get hit."

"How sure are you?"

"I'd bet my life on it," Julian said, confidently.

"Then for your sake, I hope you're right," Arnold said as he picked up the phone. He dialed a number and just waited.

"Sir, I'm here with Ranger Parker who believes we are in for an ambush if we proceed to San Antonio. He says he's so sure on it, he's bet his life on it. Yes sir," Arnold said as he pressed the speaker phone button and replaced the handset.

"Go ahead sir."

"Hello Ranger Parker. Do you know who I am?"

"Yes Mr. President."

"You believe we are under an ambush?"

"I believe if you choose to go to San Antonio, you will be. It's pretty damn convenient that a mole would be discovered on the day the substance is going to be transported."

"And you would bet your life on it?"

"Yes sir, I would."

"What about your team?"

"Mr. President, we're Texas Rangers, we put our hearts and souls into our jobs. I know my team would be right there beside me."

"I certainly hope you're right. Command Sergeant Major Arnold, you will take the substance to Waco as planned. I want Ranger Walker to accompany the substance to ensure its arrival. You will also set up a decoy team to go to San Antonio. Ranger Parker will accompany the decoy team. As for the other rangers, it's up to Ranger Walker to disperse them but I want 3 rangers to stay with the substance."

"Yes sir," Arnold said as he hung up the phone. He turned to Julian. "You better be right."

"I am sir."

Arnold headed back outside and Julian followed. They reached the other rangers.

"By order of the President of the United States of America, the substance will be transported to Waco as planned. Ranger Walker, you will be accompanying the substance to Waco with 2 other rangers. Ranger Parker will be accompanying a decoy team that will be headed to San Antonio with another ranger. It is up to you to disperse your rangers. I have to set up the decoy team but please make your decisions quickly."

Arnold walked away and Walker looked at his team.

"I hope you're right about this Julian."

"I am Walker. Haven't you ever just had a feeling?"

"Are you kidding? Although he calls them 'instincts'," Jimmy said with a laugh.

"They are instincts Trivette," Walker said calmly.

"We've all heard about Walker's Cherokee instincts over the years," Jimmy said.

"Hey he's been right every time," Sydney said.

"Thank you Sydney. Julian, I trust in your feeling. You and your partner will accompany the decoy team. Trivette, you and Gage are with me."

"You got it Boss," Gage said, even though he was torn inside. He wanted to be there with Sydney and Julian, but he knew if Julian was wrong, he would be needed in Waco.

"Thanks Walker. Let's roll Sydney," Julian said.

"Let's go," Sydney said as she began to walk away with Walker and Jimmy. Gage pulled Julian aside.

"You need to watch her back. If anything happens to her, I'll never forgive you," Gage said to his brother.

"I'd never let anything happen to her. Sydney is my family now too, man."

"Yeah, well we just made the choice to expand the family so she needs to come back, safe and sound."

"Congrats man. You guys make some beautiful kids."

"Thanks."

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Julian and Sydney had been on the road with the decoy team for just over two hours. Walker's team had radioed in, the substance got to the base in Waco with no problems and that team was headed back to Dallas. Sydney herself was beginning to question Julian's feeling when a rocket blew up the road in front of the team. The driver struggled but was able to bring the rig to a stop.

Sydney and Julian bailed out of the rig as a group of masked men attacked.

"Right flank, advance!" Julian called out to the soldiers. The team of 3 men on his right charged forward and began to engage in hand to hand combat with some of the masked men. "Left flank, advance!" Julian called out again and the men on his left also charged. Sydney was busy with a masked man of her own, but as Julian proceeded towards the leader of the group, something seemed familiar about him.

"You're supposed to be dead, what the hell are you doing here?" Julian asked before someone clocked in square in the jaw.


	9. Chapter 9

Julian looked up from the ground at the man standing before him.

"You're dead. I watched you die, I'm the one who killed you."

"You must be a special kind of stupid, aren't ya? Yeah, you shot me with a kill shot and it would've been, if I hadn't been wearing my Kevlar."

"Kevlar?"

"Of course. I couldn't take the chance that one of those bomber bastards would double cross me. I just never figured my own brother in green would be the one to turn on me."

"What you were doing was wrong. You had to know there was no way I was going to be a part of that. I owed my loyalty to the army," Julian said, getting up and facing the man.

"Your loyalty was to me, I was the one on that mission with you. I didn't see anyone else standing up to be by your side on a mission they never expected us to come back from. I was the one who listened to you as you whined about your sad, pathetic life. We were in it together and you turned on me. I really thought I could trust you."

"There was no way I was going to side with you. What you were doing was morally wrong and betrayed the army, the one organization that we represented. That's where my loyalty was."

"Now you will pay for your mistakes."

"What mistakes?"

"The ones you made against me and my sister."

8888

Sydney had just finished tying up her assailant when she saw Julian being dragged away through the woods by two of the masked men.

"Keep these guys contained until the MPs can arrive. I need to go after my partner," she called to the soldier closest to her.

"Yes ma'am."

Sydney pulled out her phone as she began towards the woods.

"Walker."

"Walker, its Sydney. We've got a problem."

8888

"Alright Sydney. You keep Julian in your sights and we'll be there as soon as we can. Don't do anything dangerous without backup." Walker hung up his phone.

"What's wrong?" Jimmy asked.

"Julian was right, the convoy was hit."

"Is Syd okay?" Gage asked, panicked.

"She's fine but it seems like Julian has been taken hostage. Sydney is following at a safe distance and waiting for us so let's go!"

Walker, Jimmy and Gage borrowed a helicopter from Commander Arnold and took off towards San Antonio.

8888

Julian was thrown onto the floor of an old ramshackle barn. He looked up but got kicked in the face. His lip began to bleed.

"You should've just stayed dead," Julian said, trying again to stand up.

"I spent years planning out my revenge on you. You betrayed me, you hurt my sister."

"I didn't do anything to your sister. I don't even know your sister."

"Of course you do, we were all in the same pledge class when we enlisted."

"What does your sister have to do with any of this?"

"She liked you, man, for whatever reason. She would've given up the army for you, but you had to choose Gina over her. You've hurt her, so now you must pay."

"Who is she?"

"Dana."

8888

"Gage, can you think of anyone who might hold a grudge against Julian and the army? Sydney said it seemed like whoever targeted the convoy was mostly interested in Julian?" Walker asked.

"No, he never really talked much about the army, but I might know someone who would know," Gage said as he pulled out his phone and dialed a number Julian had given him.

"Hello?"

"Regina Parker?"

"Yes?"

"This is Ranger Gage with the Texas Rangers."

"Is he dead?"

"Is who dead?"

"Julian, is he dead?"

"No."

"Then why are you calling me?"

"We believe he's been abducted."

"Abducted?"

"The convoy he was on was targeted and he's been taken. The assailant seems to know him, might have a grudge."

"Sounds like Randy."

"Who's Randy?"

"Julian's last mission in the army before he discharged was brutal. He and Randy were on it together. They were grunts together when they first signed up, along with Randy's little sister Dana."

"Dana?"

"Yeah."

"Dana what?"

"Dana Tyler."

"Dana Tyler's older brother was in the Army with Julian?" Gage asked as he looked at Walker.

"Yeah. Randy had waited for him and Dana to join together. It was his way of looking out for her, like he had done all this life."

"You are aware that Dana Tyler works for the base here in Dallas?"

"Of course. She had reached out to Julian a couple times over the years since Randy died."

"Randy's dead?"

"He died on that last mission. Julian was really upset about it, he felt like he let his squadron down. But in all honesty, that was a suicide mission. Julian had told me once that the bigwigs in the Army didn't believe he and Randy would come back alive. I always thought something more had to have happened but Julian refused to talk about it."

"If Randy Tyler is dead, how could he abduct Julian?"

8888

Sydney crept up to the old barn and peered through the broken glass. She could see the bloodied body of her partner on the ground as his assailants continued to beat him. She tried to find a way to sneak inside but there was no way to get in without being seen. Her only hope was that Walker, Trivette and Gage would show up in time.

Julian was inside, he could feel himself getting weaker with each blow. He knew he had to get up and start fighting back. Worst of all, he left Sydney alone to fend for herself and breaking a promise to Gage. He could only hope that his brother wouldn't be too angry with him.

Julian saw a break in the action and sprang to his feet. He raised his hands to a fighting stance and peered at his captor through the blood that blurred his vision.

"Enough is enough. We end this now."

"Just waiting on you to join the party cowboy," the man said.

"Me and you," Julian said, spitting out blood.

"To the death," the man said.

The man lunged at Julian, hoping his battered state would leave him vulnerable. But Julian was too quick for him. He sidestepped the man and spun around to deliver a kick between the shoulder blades. The man fell to the ground and as his goons went to his aide, Sydney saw an opening. She burst inside, sending her foot flying into one of the goons face. The other lunged at her and she ducked. Rolling across the floor, she stood beside Julian, her fighting stance mimicking his.

"You okay?" she asked.

"You shouldn't have come here, Syd," Julian said.

"You're my partner, I wasn't leaving you alone."

"I promised Gage that nothing would happen to you."

"And nothing will. Just do me one favor?" Sydney asked.

"What?"

"Bend!"

Julian bent forward and felt Sydney roll across his back before landing a kick in the back of the man and rolling back off. Julian stood and was about to strike when the door burst open and in came Walker, Gage and Trivette.

Together the 3 men began to fight off the attackers as Sydney tended to Julian. She helped ease him to the floor before ripping off her over shirt and pressing it to his temple. She did her best to wipe up the blood but it was clear that Julian was going to need some serious medical attention. She pulled out her phone and dialed 911.

"This is Texas Ranger Sydney Cooke. I need a Medivac Chopper, Mile Marker 354 2, 2 hours outside of Dallas. We're about 1 mile into the woods to the right of the road. Old abandon cabin. Victim is a white male, approximately 40 years of age. He's badly beaten and he's a Texas Ranger."

8888

The helicopter landed on the top of St. Mathews' hospital. The EMTs unloaded Julien and Sydney jumped out of the aircraft. She had chosen to ride along with him while Walker, Trivette and Gage rode in Walker's pickup. Walker also wanted her checked out to make sure she was okay, as some of the assailants got a couple good hits in.

"Is he gonna be okay?" Sydney asked as they wheeled him down the hallway.

"We need to get him into surgery," the EMT said. He spotted a nearby nurse. "Nurse Ritter, Ranger Cooke needs to be checked out."

"I'm fine," Sydney protested.

"Ranger Walker said you need to get checked out. Now sit," the EMT said, pointing to a wheelchair. Sydney reluctantly sat down and the nurse wheeled her away.

Walker, Trivette and Gage arrived at the hospital followed by Alex and Erica. Walker greeted his wife and helped ease her into a chair.

"Alex, you shouldn't have come. You're almost 9 months pregnant," Walker said.

"Sydney and Julien are our friends. Where else would I be? Wild horses couldn't keep me away, Cowboy."

"Just promise me you'll stay sitting down until we know something?" he asked.

"I will," she said as she kissed his cheek.

"Has anyone called Julien's family?" Erica asked, keeping her eye on the children.

"Gage called his ex-wife," Trivette said.

"What about his parents?" Alex asked.

"Not yet. I wanted something more concrete to tell them. Everything has been up in the air," Gage said, sitting next to Alex. She put her arm around his shoulders and tried to comfort him.

"Julien is gonna be fine," she said.

"Syd took a couple hits too. Walker told her she had to get checked out," he said, putting his head in his hands.

"I'm looking for the family of Sydney Cooke?" a doctor said. Gage stood.

"I'm her husband."

"Your wife is going to be just fine. She did take a couple blows to her back, so she might have some bruising in the next few days but a couple Advil and she should be just fine. We took some blood and urine to run a few tests but she should be able to be discharged within a few hours."

"And Julien Parker?" Gage asked.

"Has his family arrived?" the doctor asked.

"I'm his brother."

"Mr. Parker is in surgery. He has sustained a couple broken ribs and some trauma to his right eye. Its too soon to tell if he has suffered any permanent damages but we are doing the best we can for him. He will have to remain here until we're sure he is out of the woods. I best be getting back. If you'd like to see Ranger Cooke, Nurse Ritter can take you back to her."

"Thank you," Gage said as the doctor shook his hand and walked away. The nurse led him down the hall to Sydney. As Gage entered the room, he let out a huge sigh of relief as he saw her lying sound asleep on the bed. Her face had a bruise but she was okay. She was alive and she was still his.

8888

The next day, Sydney was home resting when there was a knock at the door. Gage had gone back to the hospital to check on Julien who had pulled through his surgery. Sydney got up to answer the door.

A woman with long black hair stood before her, dressed moderately in a flowing blouse and jeans with cowboy boots.

"Can I help you?" Sydney asked.

"I'm looking for Francis Gage."

"He's not home, can I help you? I'm Sydney, his wife."

"I'm Regina, Julien's wife."


End file.
